MOOCs: Expectations and Reality Full Report, May 2014. Fiona M. Hollands, Ph.D.; Devayani Tirthali, Ed.D. Center for Benefit-Cost Studies of Education, Teachers College, Columbia University

“Over the past few years, observers of higher education have speculated about dramatic changes that must occur to accommodate more learners at lower costs and to facilitate a shift away from the accumulation of knowledge to the acquisition of a variety of cognitive and non-cognitive skills. All scenarios feature a major role for technology and online learning. Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are the most recent candidates being pushed forward to fulfill these ambitious goals. To date, there has been little evidence collected that would allow an assessment of whether MOOCs do indeed provide a cost-effective mechanism for producing desirable educational outcomes at scale. It is not even clear that these are the goals of those institutions offering MOOCs. This report investigates the actual goals of institutions creating MOOCs or integrating them into their programs, and reviews the current evidence regarding whether and how these goals are being achieved, and at what cost.”